Is it worth reporting this incident?

ontwowheels

Hi,

I was pointed in the direction of this forum from another board where I posted about this.

Yesterday on my commute home, I had an incident with a taxi driver. I was stopped at a set of traffic lights in the "straight ahead" lane; the taxi pulled up next to me in the "turn left" lane. When the lights changed, I got away quickly only to find the taxi undertaking me, then cutting in front. I shouted, and when we were stopped at the next lights (with me immediately behind him) he leant out his window and shouted something. I responded by telling him he was in the wrong lane and should have waited behind me.

The lights changed, and he headed off on the same route as I was to be going. We encountered each other again at a further set of lights; this time, he was stopped in the ASZ (I saw him enter it with the lights at red). This is a pretty hairy junction that really needs the ASZ, so I still went in front. When the lights changed, I remained in the primary position in my lane...only for him to overtake me and cut in front, while shouting that he hoped I was knocked off. He then went a different way at the next junction (but not before I'd managed to cut back in front into another ASZ).

Anyway, I was wondering if this was worth reporting? Annoyingly, the batteries on my helmet camera had gone flat so I didn't have it on, which means that unless he was carrying a fare that can be traced, or people in other cars are able to give an account of what happened, it's my word against his.

Part of me wants to do it to, if nothing else, put the frighteners on him. But another part of me says it's not worth the bother, and to just make sure I always have spare batteries so that if anything like this happens again, I've got evidence.

Thanks in advance for any advice

MrChuck

Your individual complaint might not count for much, but If he's got previous at this he might have been reported before and if it keeps happening something might get done about him.

gaz545

Unless you can remember the details, you have no chance!
If you can, then you can report it to various bodies (if you are in london TFL and Roadsafe).

BUT, you have the problem of your word against theres. In the long run it's best just to forget about such an incident but to also learn from it. You could have avoided the last part by not filtering back in fornt of the taxi driver. I don't believe there is ever a NEED for an ASL or the NEED to use it. You NEED good lane discipline and that is all.

bails87

From my experiences, I wouldn't bother. They probably wouldn't even contact him to see if anything happened.

ontwowheels

Thanks, everyone. I'll let this one go, but if I ever capture anything on camera I'll definitely report it.

gaz545 wrote:

You could have avoided the last part by not filtering back in fornt of the taxi driver. I don't believe there is ever a NEED for an ASL or the NEED to use it. You NEED good lane discipline and that is all.

That's fair enough. I'll confess to being irritated not only by his initial actions, but also by his occupation of the ASZ, and so wanted to re-assert myself on the road. Perhaps wrong, but heat of the moment and all that :oops:

cooldad

You need to relax more. You inflamed the situation. He may be a d1ck, no reason for you to be one too, and on a bike you will probably come off worse, right or not.

gezebo

cooldad wrote:

You need to relax more. You inflamed the situation. He may be a d1ck, no reason for you to be one too, and on a bike you will probably come off worse, right or not.

+1

bails87

True, it's better that the bad driver is in front and driving away than behind you and catching up with the red mist descending.

Topaxci

I would still report it if you have the vehicles details. Mainly for the threat rather than the bad driving.

I reported an incident a while back when an oncoming car driver decided to turn into the same junction as me at the same time. At the next junction he rolled down the window and shouted that 'all cyclist were dangerous and next time he would kill me'.
I would normally have let the manouvre slide but the threat was a step too far in my mind.

Surprising the police visited me at home two days later to say they had spoken to the driver and he wanted to apologise for whole encounter.

Even if you don't hear anything and it vanishes into the a bad driver report blackhole, then at least you tried.

bails87

Did he make a threat though?

IANAL, but "I hope something bad happens" is different to "I'm going to run you over".

Butterd2

cooldad wrote:

You need to relax more. You inflamed the situation. He may be a d1ck, no reason for you to be one too, and on a bike you will probably come off worse, right or not.

+0.5 - only half true.
If you are the sensitive sort I would agree, on the other hand if you want to inflame the situation then fair enough, but be willing to deal with the consequences whatever they may be. You can't enter into a shouting match with someone then report them for saying something nasty.